


Control (And a Lack Thereof)

by Adariall



Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: And best lover, Anders needs a lot more than a hug, Being pulled in multiple directions isn't fun, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Especially for Anders, Light Dom/sub, M/M, Power Dynamics, Sibling Incest, Ty is the best brother ever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-08
Updated: 2014-02-08
Packaged: 2018-01-11 16:02:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1175024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adariall/pseuds/Adariall
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When it all gets to be too much Ty knows that Anders needs something that he isn't always willing to ask for. But just because Anders isn't willing to ask doesn't mean that Ty won't step up to the plate and take care of him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Control (And a Lack Thereof)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AkakoDukes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkakoDukes/gifts), [justalittlebitspecial](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=justalittlebitspecial).



Ty knew with Anders there would come a time when the pressure would become too great for his brother to handle without some aid. Anders took on Colin; he took on others Gods and Goddesses. He fought with Mike and he kept his company afloat. But sometimes…sometimes Ty knew that Anders needed to give up control. He'd discovered that particular need of Anders' by accident, something that neither of them discussed after the fact, but Ty held onto the knowledge tightly, secreting it away for when it could be used. Unfortunately, the need for his knowledge came far more quickly than he had ever anticipated. 

Things had gone to hell as they tended to do with Johnsons were involved, and they did so rather quickly. It started with Gaia and Axl and snowballed as things went even further downhill. Ty had become a God again, Colin had brought down his wrath on their family once more and that had come to a head in the form of a showdown between the three of them after having protected Dawn, and so much more than he couldn’t even bring himself to list. He realized as he watched his brother one night over dinner that he could already see the very beginnings of cracks as they started to form in Anders' mask of smug, self-assured calmness. Little by little more appeared and Ty knew that it wouldn’t be long before he would have to step in, and found that he was correct one warm evening as he let himself into the house after a long afternoon at work.

When he’d walked into the house that night, he’d found that almost all the lights were out, save for those in the kitchen and dining room. He dropped his bag on the floor next to the door before he kicked off his shoes and made his way further inside. As he reached the kitchen he saw that Anders wasn’t sitting at the counter as he normally would have been, but instead he paced around the kitchen like a caged animal, and Ty knew that anyone with eyes could see that his brother’s mind was far away from their home at that very moment.

"Anders," he began carefully as he dropped his keys onto the counter. "You okay?"

Anders stopped his pacing for a moment and rubbed a hand through his hair in a clearly absent-minded fashion. "What?"

"I said are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, Ty. I'm just. I'm fine." Anders turned on his heel and returned to pacing around the kitchen. "I mean Colin is making my life hell, I'm haemorrhaging clients- again, oh, and Mike's decided that there's some sort of shit that needs to go down and apparently I'm supposed to be on his side, but then there's Axl who wants me on his side. I don't want to pick a fucking side, Ty. I want them to leave me alone so I can save my company and keep shit together long enough to make sure that everything isn't going to fall apart completely. Is that too fucking much to ask?"

Ty's eyes widened for a moment before he carefully stepped forward. "Not at all. I think you should have some time to do what you need to do without anyone stepping in."

"Thank you!" As he threw up his hands, Anders spun around so that he was facing Ty once more. "Why can't anyone else see that? I'm not some sort of fucking energizer bunny."

"You know that, I know that. Even Dawn knows that."

Anders stopped abruptly and raised his eyes to meet Ty's for the first time since he had entered the house. He dragged his hand across his face, across the stubble that had accumulated there, and he suddenly looked so tired. "Then why the fuck can't anyone else?"

It was only then that Ty realized just how utterly in knots his brother was. Wordlessly, he crossed the room, a new purpose in his step and he watched as Anders expression changed. 

“What?”

“I have let this go one for long enough. You are going to end up sick if you keep going on like this, and then I don’t know how long you’ll be out of commission and right now? That’s not good.”

“I fucking know, okay Ty? Why the hell do you think I’m here right now instead of at the office? I needed some time to myself

"And I’m damn glad that you finally realized that. I was getting tired of having to beg and plead with Dawn to get you out of the office every night. But this isn’t taking time for yourself. This is pacing around our home, looking like you’re about to wear a hole in the floor and you’re just going to end up tying yourself into even more knots. You need to take tonight to relax, Anders. You need to find a way to let everything go even if it’s just for a few hours because if you don’t you’re going to end up sick, or even worse, and I don’t want to risk that.”

Anders snorted loudly as he looked at anywhere other than Ty's face. "That'd be irony, wouldn't it? Survive God hunters only to end up dying from a heart attack."

"You're not going to die from a heart attack, Anders." Ty sighed. "And would you just listen to me?”

"What are you going to do then, Ty? Are you going to play nice with our brothers? Are you going to deal with Colin, because that went over so well the last time you tried to do it alone. How about my company? How are you going to save it when even I don't know if I can?"

Ty knew that he couldn't take what Anders had said to heart. It was a man backed into a corner lashing out and he wouldn't, he couldn't hold it against him. "I'm not going to do anything. But what I'm going to do is give you an option."

"An option? An option for what?" Anders snorted. 

"A way out tonight. I know what you need, always have. I just didn't know when you'd need it." He kept his voice as neutral as possible.

Anders couldn't keep the curiosity out of his voice as his eyes narrowed. "Need what?"

"To let go." 

If anything, Anders eyes only narrowed further and he straightened his spine. "Let go of what, Ty?"

Ty gazed silently at his brother for several long moments before he ducked his head. Sometimes, he thought with tired amusement, Anders could be even more clueless than Axl. 

"Let go of what, Tyrone." 

As he raised his head, Ty took another step forward into his brother's space. "I think you know exactly what."

Anders mouth dropped open but before he could say a word, Ty pressed their mouths together in a strangely chaste kiss. When he pulled back, he could see that Anders expression had shifted from one of disbelief and almost outrage to something strange that Ty really couldn’t identify. 

“Anders?” He kept his voice low and skimmed his fingers across one of his brother’s forearms, a touch which left a wave of gooseflesh in its wake.

“Why?” Anders voice was pitched low and seemed to be devoid of any emotion. “Why this, Ty? Why now?”

Ty’s lips twisted up into a crooked smile. “Because I know you, Anders. I know what you’ve been living with for the past few months and how much you’ve tried to take on. You like everyone to think you’re a right bastard, but the truth is that you’re far from it.” He shook his head with fond exasperation. “But right now? Right now you need the option of this. You need a chance to give up having to be the one in control of everything, the one having to worry about everything. Let me take care of you and give you what you need.”

Anders stared down at Ty’s hand as it curled around his arm for a moment before it slid away and he let out a shuddering sigh. He licked his lips and exhaled slowly before he bowed his head forward. “Okay." He swallowed. “All right.”

"What?" Ty slipped his fingers beneath Anders' chin before he tipped his head up. 

"I said all right. Don’t you dare make me say it again Ty, or I will walk away."

"Good." As his fingers slid away from his brother's face he noticed that Anders breathing had slowed, he no longer sounded as if he had just run a marathon. He sighed softly before he wrapped his hands easily around Anders wrists and raised them above his head. He used his weight to press his brother back against the cupboards that lined the wall and for not the first time he found himself grateful for the fact that they'd foregone the usual exterior handles. 

"You're not going to say another word unless you want this to stop. If you call me by my name, who I am as a God, I will stop." He paused for a moment and met Anders eyes levelly. "Am I understood?"Anders swallowed hard before he nodded his head once. 

"Good." Ty squeezed Anders' wrists once more before he stepped away from his brother. "Now get into the bedroom. I need to wash up before we do anything, so by the time I get in there I expect you to be undressed and on the bed, waiting. You will not touch yourself; you will not say a word until I give you permission."

He pressed his lips together and held Ty's gaze as his eyes reflected his affirmation and acceptance of Ty's orders. But then all at once he lowered his eyes away from Ty's face and he moved toward their bedroom without a single hitch in his step. 

As Ty kept his eyes trained on his brother's back he could see how his posture had already changed. He no longer looked as if he were about to snap at the slightest provocation. He waited until Anders disappeared into the bedroom before he slumped against the counter top. He knew that he could give Anders exactly what he needed; he knew that his brother would wake up in the morning and he wouldn’t look like the weight of the world was bearing down on his shoulders any longer. What he didn’t know, however, was how long it would last. When it came down to it though, he would be willing to give Anders whatever he needed for the rest of his life and there was absolutely nothing in the world that could change that.


End file.
